BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - A Bessemer jury this afternoon found that a convenience store must pay more than $15 million in damages for a 2007 crash that killed a 13-year-old boy and injured three others because the store had sold alcohol to the underage driver.

The jury issued the verdict against The Nineteenth Street Investments Inc., former owners of the 14th Street BP in Bessemer, after a week-long trial before Jefferson County Circuit Court Judge Eugene Verin. Four lawsuits had been consolidated to be heard before Verin.

"This jury decided it was time that this will not be tolerated anymore," said Ashley R. Peinhardt, attorney for Michael Waldrop, a passenger in the car that crashed.

Waldrop was awarded $750,000 in compensatory damages and $3 million in punitive damages.

Sharon Robertson, the mother of 13-year-old Drew Robertson who was killed in the crash, was awarded damages of $7 million by the jury.

"Sharon is grateful for the jury's service and thankful to have received closure and some measure of justice in the case," said her attorney Pat Lavette. "Although nothing will make up for the loss of her 13 year old son, she hopes that the verdict will send a message to irresponsible vendors -- they must card young people attempting to buy alcohol. Two seconds care can prevent a lifetime of pain for families like hers."

Ralph Bohanan, who represented Jennifer Vickery, one of the teen passengers badly injured in the crash, said the verdict will cause anybody that sells alcohol to double check their procedures. "Hopefully this message stops it from happening again. ... The jury should be proud of themselves," he said.

Vickery was awarded $3.9 million in compensatory and punitive damages, attorneys said.

Tammy Hardin, the mother of the driver of the car Brittany Caffee, was awarded $500,000 in punitive damages.

"We
were very pleased with the verdict," said Ed Tumlin, attorney for Hardin. But in light of everything,
he said he was sorry it had to come to this point. "It is very hard to compensate for a life."

The lawsuits were filed under Alabama's Dram Shop Act, which allows lawsuits to be filed against stores or restaurants that sell alcohol to minors that result in injuries or damages. Caffee, because she was the driver, could not file a lawsuit, but her mother could.

Efforts to reach attorneys for the convenience store were unsuccessful this afternoon.

According to the lawsuit filed by one of the lawsuits filed on behalf of Waldrop, the crash happened about 9 p.m. May 2, 2007, on Eastern Valley Road in Tuscaloosa County.

The driver, Caffee, was intoxicated when the crash happened.

The jury found that the convenience store owned by The Nineteenth Street Investments, Inc., had sold the alcohol to Caffee, who at the time was under the age of 21, Peinhardt said.

"As consequence of such acts, plaintiffs were caused to be injured and plaintiffs were caused to incur damages in the form of medical expenses and physical injuries including broken bones requiring surgery to repair, a ruptured spleen, head injuries requiring staples and injuries to the lungs, mental anguish, and other compensable damage," according to Waldrop's lawsuit.

Waldrop was 15 years old at the time of the crash, Peinhardt said.

Peinhardt said that the 14th Street BP had been known for selling alcohol to underage children, Peinhardt said. "Everbody knew that was the place to go if you are underage and don't have an ID," she said.

The convenience store is no longer owned by The Nineteenth Street Investments.